Taking the Temperature of Global Hotspots

By Carol Eyman

Geopolitics is constantly changing, and what you learned in high school social studies or that international relations seminar in college probably no longer applies. It can be confusing to follow the world news of the day if you don’t have the background knowledge to make sense of it. You could pore over Wikipedia . . . but wouldn’t it be more interesting to learn from a real live expert?

That’s where the library comes in. We’re holding a series of programs in the next few months about some of the hotspots you hear about nearly every day in the news – Syria, China, and India.

On Saturday, March 23, at 11 a.m. (NOTE: program postponed from February 9), Dr. Deina Abdelkader of UMass/Lowell will talk about what’s going on in Syria: not just the day-to-day fighting but also the broader implications for the country and the region. She’ll examine the historical background of the dispute and give an objective assessment of the current situation.

Then on Sunday, March 17, at 2 p.m., Dr. Lawrence (Chris) Reardon from UNH will present “Awakening Dragon: Chinese Economic Reforms Since 1978.” China has gone from an economic command economy where people could barely feed themselves to the workplace of the world, where many people are connected by cell phone, drive cars, and own large TVs. How did this transformation happen?

For our final lecture in this series on Thursday, April 25, at 7 p.m., Dr. PT Vasudevan talks about the emerging power of India and its growing economy, population, and military strength.

Dr. Reardon’s and Dr. Vasudevan’s lectures are presented in conjunction with the UNH Speakers Bureau.

Bring your questions! No registration is required for any of these programs. See you there!